Storms to welcome Fall

Now would be a good time to put away the outdoor furniture and pull out the serious rain clothes.

"Fall officially arrives this weekend and Mother Nature intends to let us all know about it. A series of early fall storms will plow through the Pacific Northwest this weekend and into next week," says Steve Pierce, President, Oregon Chapter of the American Meteorological Society.

According to Pierce, "Forecast models are in agreement that the first system will arrive Friday evening, with an even stronger system on tap for Sunday. Daytime high temperatures Saturday through Tuesday may drop 15-20 degrees below where they were Thursday. Temperatures could struggle to reach 60 degrees in the Portland metro area this weekend and early next week. It will certainly feel like fall this weekend when compared to the warm weather we have experienced as of late."

Rainfall amounts for the first half of September are already at or above the averages for the end of the month at most locations across Northwest Oregon and Southwest Washington, Pierce says. He predicts the coming rainfall will add to the records books over the weekend and into next week.

"Each subsequent system will bring increasing rainfall across all of western Oregon and Washington, along with the lowest snowfall levels of the season to the Cascades. Areas above 5,000-6,000 ft will likely see their first snowfall of the season by the beginning of next week. Another system slated for Sunday will bring with it the strongest winds of the season to the coast," says Pierce.